The Doctor returns
by JennyClaraRiverAmelia
Summary: Set after Death in Heaven, may contain spoilers. My way of dealing with the aftermath of that episode. The Doctor pops into Clara's life unecpectedly, and he has someone with him that will change Clara's life forever.
1. Chapter 1

Clara was sitting in the kitchen having a cup of tea. It had only been a couple of months since the Doctor left, seemingly for good, and since she said her final goodbye to Danny. Danny, her sweet, wonderful, idiot of a boyfriend, who had a chance of coming back to her, but who instead sent her a lost little boy who she had to take care of. She had managed to find his parents after a while. It took some heavy research, and the poor boy was so frightened when he first crossed over. He did warm up to Clara pretty quick though. When she finally found his parents a month later, and brought him to France where they now lived, it was a tearful and emotional farewell for both of them. Clara felt as though she was losing Danny all over again, in a way. Her very last connection with that wonderful, stupid man. She took a deep, shaky breath.

"I am not doing this. I am not crying", she said to herself. She had managed to not cry as much lately, but it was so difficult when she thought of the fact that he had a chance to come back to her, and he didn't take it. It was his fault that they weren't together.

"Oh, Danny", Clara said in a soft voice, with tears welling up in her eyes. She let out a sob, and bent her head down over her cup of tea, which was getting cold. "You stupid, bloody man!" She picked up the cup and threw in across the room in a fit of rage. The cup shattered against the wall, tea now everywhere. Clara laid her head down on the table, closed her eyes and cried.

"Why didn't you come back to me", she said between sobs. "I... love you... so much."

Suddenly Clara heard a sound she thought she would never hear again. She sat up straight, hands flat on the table and ears on alert. Yes, it was definitely him. She got up and quickly walked into the living room. And there she was, the TARDIS. As blue as ever. The last time she had met the Doctor, he told her he had found Gallifrey, and that he was going to stop travelling. Clara didn't have the heart to tell the Doctor that Danny hadn't come back to her then, and that what she really wanted to do was go with him. To go with the Doctor and travel with him forever, see so much and do so many things that she didn't have to think about Danny again. Maybe he had changed his mind? Maybe he had come back for her, maybe he had figured out that she was lying.

The doors to the TARDIS opened, but no one came out. Clara wiped her cheeks quickly, to make it less obvious that she had been crying, although she was sure her eyes were bloodshot.

"Where are we?" someone said inside the TARDIS. It was a young woman's voice.

"I'm not entirely sure", Clara could hear the Doctor reply. "Either somewhere in the Kawlana sphere, or the deep in the Gamma forests. It's anyone's guess really." A woman said: "Well, then, let's have a look!"

Clara heard someone running towards her, and braced herself. Out of the TARDIS came two young women, girls really, they couldn't be more than 15 or 16 years old. One had slightly darker skin than the other, but they looked quite similar. They were talking and laughing, but as soon as they saw Clara, their faces went blank. They let go of each other's hands and stopped dead in their tracks.

"Girls? Where are we? I know you've done Kawlana before, but you really didn't get to see much the last time, you know..." The Doctor had also come out of his box and seen Clara. His face was the perfect mirror of the two girls.

"Well, well, Doctor. Your companions are getting younger, aren't they?" Clara said with a strained smile, trying to not sound disappointed. "It's only been a couple of months since I saw you last, Doctor. I didn't think I'd see you again", Clara could hear her voice catch and coughed, hoping to hide that she was about to cry. She should have known that he would find others to travel with. What made her think she was so special?

"Eh, girls, please step back into the TARDIS, I have to... eh, speak with this woman alone". One of the girls, the darker skinned one, turned around and walked right back into the blue box. The other stayed put, staring unashamedly at Clara.

"Ellie, come in here right now!" The girl in the TARDIS shouted. Ellie, however, didn't appear to listen, as she stepped closer to Clara. The girl stopped right in front of her, and seemed to be studying her face intensely. Clara jumped a little when suddenly the girl had placed her left hand on Clara's cheek.

"You are so beautiful", the girl said. "Ehrm, thank you. I guess", Clara said, and to her surprise the girl, Ellie had tears in her eyes. "That's enough of that", the Doctor said, grabbed Ellie by her hands and pushed her back into the TARDIS and closed the doors.

"Doctor, who was that? It almost seemed like she knew me", Clara said, still a little shocked that the Doctor was even here.

"That's not important", the Doctor said. "I'm sorry to arrive unannounced Clara, obviously I didn't mean to come here, I was actually aiming for the vast planes of Poosh. That's a moon that I've always wanted to go to. But my TARDIS seems to be working against me, and brought me here." The Doctor was looking everywhere other than at Clara.

"How long has it been for you?" Clara asked softly. He didn't look much older. The Doctor seemed to be thinking hard.

"Oh, you know. Just two years, three months and a couple of days. Give or take." He was still not looking at Clara, but appeared to be very interested in a box of paper clips on her desk. Clara cleared her throat: "I thought you'd given up travelling. That you were going to settle down on Gallifrey."

"Oh yes, well that was actually a clever lie I told you."

"Clever?" Clara said. "Why was it clever?" She was getting a bit cross now actually. Why did he have to lie to her? Didn't she deserve to not be lied to?

"Well, I didn't want you to feel as though you had to keep travelling with me, just because Missy lied about Gallifrey. It wasn't there." The Doctor finally looked at Clara, looked her right in the eye. "I wanted you to be happy with... Danny", the Doctor said hesitantly, looking away again.

Clara could feel tears burning behind her eyes at the mention of Danny's name. "Well, I lied too, Doctor. Danny didn't come back. He chose to not come back to me." She felt a single tear roll down her cheek. "So I guess we're both great big liars, aren't we Doctor. Two old liars so afraid of the truth."

"Yes..." The Doctor said. "I suppose we are". They looked at each other, and then Clara threw her arms around the Doctor.

"Oh, it's good to see you again Doctor. I've actually missed you." She could feel the Doctor place his arms around her, properly hugging her. It was quite the feat, he wasn't one for hugging.

"I've... missed you too", the Doctor said.

"So", Clara said, letting the Doctor go. "Are they travelling with you now? Those two girls?" The Doctor hesitated and didn't seem to want to answer the question.

"Yes, sometimes. I... owe them... so I occasionally take them on short trips." The Doctor looked uncomfortable discussing the subject.

"That girl, Ellie. She did seem to know me, Doctor. Is there something I should know?" Clara studied the Doctor's face, trying to read it. "And please don't lie to me, Doctor. I think we both deserve to hear the truth from each other from now on."

The Doctor looked down at Clara, and appeared to be considering her statement. "I'm... sorry, Clara. I can't tell you. It's... timey wimey stuff, really." The Doctor looked genuinely sorry. "Well, I think we better get on", he continued. He gave Clara a quick smile, and turned around to get back into his TARDIS.

"What, that's it?" Clara said, her voice trembling. "You just show up out of nowhere, leave me with more questions than I had when you got here. And you won't even take me with you?" The last question was said with such disappointment and sadness that the Doctor halted. He turned on the spot and looked right into Clara's eyes.

"Not this time, my Clara." His voice was also filled with sadness.

"Will I see you again?" Clara asked, still with tears in her eyes. "I will, won't I?" The Doctor took a deep breath, and said:

"I really don't know Clara. But I'll see you later, yes?" With that he turned back and opened the TARDIS doors, walked inside and closed the doors behind him. Clara stood frozen, unable to think. What was she to do? No Danny, no Doctor. She had genuinely thought for a second that he had come to take her with him. To see the stars, again.

All of a sudden, the TARDIS doors burst open, and the girl, Ellie, came running out. She threw herself around Clara, and appeared to be crying. Clara closed her arms around the girl in response.

"I miss you so much", the girl whispered in Clara's ear.

"Ellie, come back here right now, or so help me I will rip up all your books!" the other girl from just inside the TARDIS yelled. Ellie let go of Clara and walked quickly into the TARDIS. The other girl stood for a while in the opening and then she slammed the doors shut. Clara could swear that she'd seen the faintest of smiles on the girl's face. The familiar sound started up, and within seconds the blue box was gone. Once again she was left alone with her thoughts, no Danny, no Doctor. No stars to visit. She took a deep breath, went into the kitchen and started to pick up the pieces of broken china.

Later that night, as Clara was getting ready for bed, something fell out of her cardigan pocket as she was taking it off. She bent down and picked up what looked like a locket. It appeared to be solid gold, in the shape of a heart. It had lovely engravings on the front. Clara opened it, and immediately sat down, right on the floor. Inside the locket, there was a tiny picture, but she could well enough make out who it was. It was Clara. Possibly a bit older, and a bit blurry, but it was definitely her. And in her lap was a little girl, about 5 or 6 years old. Opposite the picture there were words engraved. They read:

"My darling Ellie

I will always love you,

Mum."


	2. Chapter 2

Clara was pacing. Two weeks it had been since the Doctor suddenly popped back into her life, and then left it a complete mess. The locket was clenched in her hand, as it almost always had been since she found it. Either in her hand or around her neck, with Clara constantly playing with it. She kept picturing the girl, Ellie. Her mother's name. And... her daughter's? She couldn't believe it. She tried to remember what the girl looked like. Brown hair, brown eyes. She probably looked like Clara, but that wasn't exactly what she was thinking of when they'd met. Clara hadn't cried since that day, she just felt numb all over. If that girl was her daughter, she travelled with the Doctor as well. But why wasn't Clara with her? And why did she cry when she saw her, and why did she tell Clara that she missed her? There were so many questions floating around in Clara's head, and she knew that there was only one person who could answer them. She dialled the Doctor's number for the thousandth time as she was pacing the living room floor. Biting her thumb, with the locket still clenched in her fist, she walked back and forth with the phone to her ear. She had dialled that number over and over the last two weeks, and he never picked up. It did go to his voice mail once, but Clara knew that he didn't even really know he had one, let alone how to use it. After letting it ring for several minutes, Clara hung up. She threw her phone on the sofa, and kept pacing. She wasn't cross, or sad or anything. She was just numb. Her face void of any emotion, eyes dry as bone. Clara sat down and opened the locket. She had spent so much time staring at it, but it still got her every time she read the engraving and saw the picture. The picture of herself and a little girl, apparently her daughter. Clara let her finger brush over the picture, and she found herself smiling. A daughter. That means that life does go on. The Clara in the picture looks so happy, and so does Ellie.

That sound. Clara looked up and saw the blue box materializing right in front of her. Her heart made a leap. She quickly closed the locket and placed it around her neck. She stood up and walked up to the doors. She raised her hand, hesitated a little, and then knocked quietly three times. The doors opened, and Clara walked inside.

The Doctor stood by the control panel, hands behind his back, eyes looking directly at her. Clara approached him slowly, a million questions running through her mind, not knowing which one she should ask first. She reached the control panel, and with her left hand on the panel she started walking around it.

"It's good to see you, Clara." The Doctor didn't move.

"Yeah", Clara replied. "How long has it been this time, Doctor?" she said, with a hint of malice in her voice. "How long since you saw me last, and left me a complete mess?"

"That's not the question", the Doctor said. "The question is, where's the locket?"

Clara had reached the place where the Doctor stood. She looked up at him, trying to convey how she felt, even though she wasn't entirely sure herself. She reached around her neck, and unfastened the chain that the locket hung on. She reluctantly handed him the locket.

"Thank you, Clara", the Doctor said, placing the locket in the inside pocket of his coat. "You were never meant to see that. Ellie is... sometimes hard to control."

"Who is she, Doctor? Is she my daughter?" The Doctor looked down at Clara, and saw those big brown eyes were full of hurt.

"Don't do that with your eyes, seriously, they're like saucers", he said as he started scrambling around the control panel, pushing buttons and pulling levers.

"Do not change the subject, Doctor, not his time. This is far too important to me. Who is she?" Clara's voice was getting louder.

"Do you want to go somewhere spectacular? There's a planet where the flowers bloom all at once, and then they change colour! At the same time! And it's scheduled to happen", the Doctor peeked at his watch, "quite soon", he said as he pushed a button and Clara could hear the sound of the TARDIS dematerializing.

"WHO IS SHE? YOU WILL ANSWER MY QUESTION OR SO HELP ME I WILL... BE VERY CROSS!" Clara shouted as loud as she could, and it had quite an effect on the Doctor. He stopped fidgeting with the controls, looked down and sighed.

"Clara..." he said. "Ellie is... your daughter." Clara walked backward until she hit a chair and sat down, hands on knees, and looking at the floor.

"I'm sorry, you weren't supposed to find out. Those girls, they'll be the death of me. I mean, Dani, she's alright; she actually listens to me when I say something. But Ellie, oh, she has got far too much of you in her to be able to listen to what I say."

Clara's head snapped up. "The girls? What do you mean?" The Doctor's face changed all of a sudden, his eyebrows seemingly trying to meet up with his hairline, and his mouth fell open.

"Ah, well, yes, what I meant was, that, ah..." He was obviously trying to think of something clever.

Clara stood up, staring the Doctor down. "Dani and Ellie? Are they both mine?" She walked towards the Doctor. "Dani? As in my Danny? And Ellie was my mother's name."

"Daniela actually", the Doctor said. "You did name her after her father." With that the doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver, pointed it at Clara and then turned the screen towards her. Clara pulled her eyes away from the Doctor to look at the screen. It showed a miniature version of her turning slowly, and it said:

NAME: CLARA OSWALD

SPECIES: HUMAN

AGE: APPROX. 28

STATUS: PREGNANT/14 WEEKS

Clara stood there for a long time. The Doctor looked at her, not daring to speak until she did. Clara let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, then she started to hyperventilate.

"Okay, okay, let's get you seated", the Doctor said, gently leading Clara back to the chair she had just been sitting in.

"Doctor!" Clara was sobbing now. "Doctor, that can't be right! I'm not pregnant _now_! I would know!"

"Well, I don't know. Maybe you mind has been preoccupied with other thoughts lately."

"Oh my God, a baby. Two babies! What am I going to do, Doctor? And Danny... " Clara started full on wailing, head in her hands.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, they are both wonderful kids. As I said, the younger one doesn't really listen to me, but still." The Doctor said with a smile. Clara looked up at him.

"Why do they travel with you, Doctor? Why aren't I with them?" Once again Clara's eyes were so full of hurt and sadness, the Doctor had to look away.

"Ah, _that_, Clara, is not something that I can tell you. No, no point in arguing", the Doctor said quickly when Clara tried to object.

"What I _can_ tell you is this. Dani and Ellie are perfectly healthy, brilliant girls. They are three years apart, but they are like two peas in a pod, really. You hardly ever see one without the other. They take care of each other."

Clara looked at the Doctor and seemed satisfied with what he had just said. "But, Doctor... This means that I find someone new, doesn't it? Because Danny can't be Ellie's father, can he?"

"Well, yes, I suppose it does mean that", the Doctor said. "But I really can't say anything more about it."

Clara nodded, wiped her eyes and stood up. "Doctor, will you take me home? I know you wanted to show me the flower thingies, but I really think I should get home." The Doctor smiled and pressed a few buttons on the control panel.

"Oh, there is no planet with colour changing flowers, I lied to try and get you to shut up. Although, that would be brilliant wouldn't it? Maybe I'll go and see if I can find one", he said just as they heard that familiar sound of the TARDIS landing.

"Thank you, Doctor", Clara said as she left the blue box. "I know that meddling with time is dangerous, and that you worry about interfering with the future. But I won't do anything to jeopardize the lives of those two girls. I promise."

"I know, Clara", the Doctor said. "Be safe, love your girls. I'll see you later." Clara looked back at the Doctor, and she thought she saw immense sadness in his eyes, though he tried to hide it with a smile. She smiled back at him, a genuine, happy smile, the kind she hadn't given anyone for a long time.

"I'll see you later, Doctor", she said, and then the doors slammed shut and the TARDIS dematerialized.

Clara looked down, and gently placed a palm over her stomach.


	3. Chapter 3

It would be several years until Clara saw the Doctor again. Dani was born the next summer, a beautiful, happy, chubby baby she was. She looked so much like her father. Clara found love again, at least for a short while. Clara and Dani were happy with Thomas, an exceptionally ordinary man who worked in construction. After a while they had Ellie, she was born in the winter, and seemed to be tougher for it. The relationship between Clara and Thomas didn't last however, and they split on amicable terms. Clara got sole custody, but Thomas would now and again take his daughter and step daughter out for a treat. These trips would, however, become rarer as time went on.

Clara was happy, and so were the girls. For Ellie's 6th birthday, Clara got her a locket she'd found in an antique shop. She'd just walked by it one day, and there it was. It almost didn't have a scratch on it, which let Clara know that her youngest would probably wear that locket every day, because the very first time she'd seen it, it had had scratches all over it. Clara had gotten Dani a similar locket for her 6th birthday as well, three years earlier. Ellie was so excited when she opened her present, as she had been eying her sister's locket for years.

They lived a happy, carefree life. Clara enjoyed teaching, and both girls were very clever, and thrived at school. To be honest, Clara hadn't thought of the Doctor in a very long while, when she heard a familiar sound late one night. The girls were asleep, and Clara was up doing some marking for her English class and suddenly, there she was again. The TARDIS. Over nine years it had been, for Clara at least. Who knows, maybe there would be a brand new Doctor to emerge from his box. Clara stood up, and felt oddly nervous. She wasn't sure why, but the last few times when the Doctor had come to visit, it had turned her life upside down. The TARDIS doors opened, and Clara stepped inside.

There he was. Didn't look as though he'd aged a day, really. Same grey hair, same button-up shirt and black coat.

"Hello Clara", he said with a smile. "I imagine it's been quite a while since you saw me last."

Clara couldn't help but smile. "Yeah. Nine years it's been, Doctor. I've got my girls now. Both strong, beautiful little girls."

"I'm glad", the Doctor said, still smiling. "Of course, for me it hasn't really been long at all. It's only been a few months since I last saw you, you know. Have you put on a few pounds?"

"Oy!" Clara exclaimed, slapping the Doctor on the hand with a bit more force than necessary. "I've had two children you know. Not to mention that I've gotten nine years older. Let's not forget that you aged 30 years in a sneeze."

"Yes yes, let's not lose focus now", the Doctor said, starting to push buttons.

"Whoa, wait what are you doing?" Clara asked. "I can't go anywhere, the girls are asleep upstairs!" The Doctor looked confused. "I'll have you back in five minutes. Literally!"

Clara gave him her best 'Oh, really' look.

"Doctor. You don't really have the best track record when it comes to arriving on time. I once asked you to come, and you arrived two weeks later!"

"Ah, yes, but that wasn't my fault, you see, River asked me to visit a planet where the ground is covered in sink holes – don't ask. Anyway, I got stuck in a hole, so did River by the way, and it took us a while to get out, and when we did the local life forms started worshipping us as gods. River rather liked that of course, but it turns out that they sacrifice their gods to higher gods, so naturally that also took us a while to get out of."

Clara had to smile at that, the Doctor was still the Doctor, going on adventures with his wife (wasn't she dead?) and getting himself into trouble.

"Doctor, seriously, I can't come with you. It's my turn to say no this time. I have to stay with the girls." Clara stood with her arms crossed, looking the Doctor straight in the eye.

"Well, can't they come with?" The Doctor asked, as if it was the most natural thing in the world to take two girls of 6 and 9 in a flying time-space machine.

"What?" Clara asked. "What will I tell them? Anyways they're sleeping."

"Just wake them up then. Tell them it's a dream, a strange, wonderful dream."

"Are you serious?"

"Well, yes", the Doctor replied. Clara considered it for a moment. She had missed travelling with the Doctor, however much she enjoyed being a mum and teacher. And she so wanted her girls to see the universe.

"Alright", Clara said. "But nothing dangerous, no dodgy disappearances or murders, no crime to be solved. Just something wonderful, and then straight back home."

"Deal", the Doctor said. Clara jumped a little and squealed, and then ran out of the TARDIS to get her girls. She ran into their room, and gently stroked Dani's cheek.

"Wakey, wakey pretty girl. We're going on an adventure!" Dani stretched contently and yawned.

"Mum, what time is it? It's still dark out!"

"It doesn't matter, let's go!" Dani smiled at her mother and started to pull on her socks. Clara reached up to the top bunk where little Ellie was sleeping, although when Clara looked at her daughter's face she could tell that she was definitely not sleeping.

"Ellie Angela Oswald, are you still awake?" The little girl opened one eye and looked at her mother.

"Well, I wasn't, but then I heard a noise, and it woke me up! It was the strangest noise mummy, it was like this", and the girl tried to imitate what was obviously supposed to be the TARDIS noise. Clara grinned at her clever daughter and planted a big kiss on her cheek.

"Never mind little turtle, we're going on an adventure! Put on some shoes and a coat", Clara said as she lifted Ellie from her bed and placed her on the floor.

The three of them went into the living room, and the girls gasped at the sight of the big blue box. Clara couldn't stop grinning at the looks on the girls' faces. She held them each in one hand, and led them into the TARDIS.

"Oh my gosh", Dani said. "It's much bigger on the inside, did you notice?" The older girl asked her little sister. Ellie seemed to consider this statement for a while.

"I thought it was just smaller on the outside", Ellie replied.

"See I told you, spitting image of her mother that little one", the Doctor said. He stood by the control panel, smiling widely at Clara and the girls.

"Girls, I'd like you to meet a friend of mine", Clara said. "This is the Doctor. And this is his space ship."

"It's nice to meet you!" The girls said almost simultaneously. Ellie even threw in a little curtsey.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you too", The Doctor said as he was leaning down a little to be at their eye level. "You know, I've known your mother for a long time. And by the way it isn't just a space ship. This ship can go anywhere in time and space."

"Anywhere?" Ellie asked excitedly. The Doctor nodded, and proceeded to press buttons and pull levers.

"Remember, Doctor, nowhere dangerous, yeah?" Clara reminded him, her hands on her daughters' shoulders.

"Don't worry, my Clara", the Doctor pulled the screen towards her. "I found a perfect place."

The Doctor had actually found a place where there was colour changing flowers. The girls were delighted, and ran around in the field for hours. The Doctor and Clara watched them, both with smiles on their faces.

"Clara..." the Doctor started. Clara waited for him to continue, but he seemed to be at a loss for words.

"Doctor, what is it?" she said with a little laugh. She was so happy right now, watching her girls having such a good time, picking flowers and squealing with joy when they picked one and it changed colour right there in their hands. Clara had a whole bouquet beside her with flowers that the girls had come running over to give to her. And she was with the Doctor again. It really felt like she had been travelling with him forever.

"Clara I... There is something that I have to tell you. Or rather, it is something that I feel I should tell you."

"Go on", Clara said, although she had a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"All those years ago, when Ellie gave you the locket and when she said that she missed you. There is something to it. Something huge."

Clara felt the colour drain from her face, and she glanced over at the girls to make sure that they weren't listening.

"What is it, Doctor? Am I going to die?"

"We're all dying, Clara. Especially you humans, your lives are exceptionally short you know."

"Please, Doctor", Clara said closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "Tell me."

"I don't know if you die. But I do know that circumstances make it so that you will not be with them for a while. I don't know for how long, I don't even know if it's a fixed thing that can't be changed. All I know is what I have learned from your daughters in the future and certain connections I have."

Clara cried silently beside the Doctor. The pain in her heart was almost unbearable. Leaving her girls? Not being with them for a long time?

"Why?" she asked the Doctor. "Why do I have to leave them?" Then a more pressing question came to Clara's mind, a question that was almost too painful to ask.

"When?" She said quietly, looking down at the colour changing bouquet she now held in her hands. The flowers were gently transitioning from blue to a fiery orange.

"Ellie has told me... That it will happen just before her 7th birthday", the Doctor said softly and without looking at Clara.

Clara let out a sob. Ellie's 7th birthday? That was only a few months away! No, no, this was definitely not happening.

"Change it", Clara told the Doctor. He looked up at her with an apologetic look.

"I'm not sure I can, Clara. I'll try of course, but..."

"No, you won't try, you will do!" Clara was getting upset now, and cross. She was hurting so bad, she felt as though her heart would break if she looked up at her girls.

"Change it! Please help me, Doctor! Please help me, help my girls, what will they do when I'm gone? Oh god, you know don't you", she said suddenly, looking up at the Doctor. "What will happen to them?" The Doctor sighed, and finally looked Clara in the eye.

"They will be okay. I promise."

Tears were running down Clara's cheeks. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Well, I'm not planning on going anywhere. So, whatever you've heard... I can change it. I'm not leaving them!" She forced herself to look up at Dani and Ellie, and she covered her mouth to quiet the sob that she couldn't stop from coming out.

"Can you take us home, please?" she asked the Doctor as she got up and called the girls to her.

"Of course. Clara, I'm sorry..."

"Don't!" Clara held a finger up in front of her. "Just take us home, okay?"

Clara put the girls to bed, and they fell asleep almost instantly, they were so tired from the running and laughing and flower picking. They each had a handful of colour changing flowers beside them in their beds.

The TARDIS was still in the living room when Clara came back out. She quietly opened the door, and went inside. The Doctor was sitting in a chair, head in his hands.

"So, where are you off to now?" she asked, her voice shaking, The Doctor looked up, gave her a little smile, and said: "Oh, you know. Places to see. Species to save." Clara nodded.

"I will change it you know", she said. "I'm not going to leave them." The Doctor smiled a sad smile.

"Of course, Clara", he said as he got up and kissed the top of her head.

"You don't believe me, do you", she said silently, with sadness in her voice. "You don't think it's possible." He looked at her intently, as if studying her.

"You're my impossible girl, Clara. If anyone can do it, you can. I'll see you later."

Clara still had tears in her eyes and a catch in her throat, so she just nodded again, and turned around and walked out of the TARDIS.


	4. Chapter 4

Several months had gone by since the Doctor's last visit. Dani and Ellie were still asking their mother when he would be back, still talking about the flowers that changed colours. Clara tried her hardest to reassure them that the Doctor would most definitely be back to take them on more adventures, but her heart was breaking every time she looked at those girls. Sometimes she'd forget, though. Sometimes she would be so happy and laugh so loudly that she forgot. But then, out of nowhere, she remembered. She remembered that soon she would disappear out of their lives, and she would leave her precious girls. And her heart would shatter into a million pieces all over again. She would disappear unless she found a way to stop it. But, how can you stop something when you don't really know when it's going to happen, let alone _what_ is going to happen? Dani had turned 10 this summer. Her beautiful grown-up girl had celebrated with flowers in her hair and her sister always right by her side. They really were very close, her and Ellie. And now November was fast approaching, and with that, Ellie's 7th birthday.

Ellie was so excited for her birthday. Clara had promised her that she could have a Harry Potter themed party, as her daughter loved the books dearly. Clara made that promise very well knowing that she would most likely not be there.

It wasn't that she hadn't tried to stop this from happening. Clara had tried to think of different ways to try and figure out what this thing that was going to happen was. But she didn't know where to start, except for the Doctor. She had thought very hard on it one day, hoping to get a message to the Doctor on his psychic paper, as he was not picking up his phone. Her message got through alright, but it wasn't the Doctor who was in possession of the psychic paper. It was professor River Song. They had met before, but that was River as a mere projection, an image of the woman who was lost a long time ago. The woman who appeared in front of Clara in a hiss of smoke this time, however, did seem very much alive. And she didn't seem to know Clara at all.

"Well, hello there", Professor Song said seductively. "If you're the Doctor, I must have skipped a few regenerations." Clara stood dumb founded.

"Ah, no, Professor Song, it's me, Clara." River eyed her suspiciously. "I travelled with the Doctor a while ago. We met once, remember? With Vastra and Jenny and Strax."

"How do you know my name? I haven't the faintest idea who you are." River looked very suspicious now, looking around the room, her hand gliding down to the gun she had strapped to her right thigh. Clara's heart dropped into her stomach. If River didn't recognize her, she surely wouldn't be willing to help. Clara's mind was racing, desperate to convince River that she was trustworthy.

"That's a... That's a vortex manipulator, yeah?" she blurted out, gesturing to the device on River's wrist. "I've used one of those, effective, but terrible on the hair." River looked genuinely surprised. She opened her mouth to speak, but Clara continued:

"I know you are married to the Doctor. Or you will be, anyway. I know that you know his name, and I don't think anybody else knows it, which means that he must love you a great deal. Your parents are... Amy and Rory! And they travelled with the Doctor as well. And you saved the Doctor once. He speaks about it with such love and pride in his voice." Clara was done ranting, and hoped that she had said enough to make River stay, to make her help her. River's frown suddenly turned into a grin.

"Once? Oh, I've saved that man so many times you wouldn't believe it, although he might not admit he needed saving. I don't believe we've been properly introduced. Doctor River Song." River held out her hand.

"Clara. Oswald. _Doctor_ Song? Sorry, spoilers I guess", Clara said hesitantly. River grinned.

"Precisely, dear. Now, the Doctor has kindly lent me his psychic paper. Well, not lent me as much as... Unknowingly borrowed it to me. " Clara understood that this was a gentle way of saying she stole it.

"How can I help you, miss Clara Oswald?" Clara took a deep breath, and tried to get her thoughts organized. At least the girls were at school, so they wouldn't be disturbed.

"River. The Doctor has told me that something... Is going to happen to me. I don't know what or even exactly when, but I know that I have to stop it." Clara looked up at River with hope and desperation. Surely she would be able to help? The way the Doctor spoke of her, he made her sound like a super hero. River's eyes looked at her with a mixture of pity and sadness.

"Clara... If he has told you that it will happen... It will happen. The Doctor would change it if he could, you know he would. Although, I must say it's very unprofessional of him to even tell you in the first place. Spoilers aren't something to be taken lightly."

"But don't you think he told me for a reason? So that I could change it? Why else would he have told me?" Clara could hear herself clinging at straws here, but she couldn't just accept it.

"Oh sweetie, maybe he just wanted to give you time to prepare." Clara could feel tears building up in her eyes, again. God, the amount of crying she had been doing lately, it's amazing she hadn't run dry yet. Clara gently sat down on the floor, tears running freely now. She felt as though she'd been deflated, her last hope dwindling before her eyes. She looked up at the table beside her. There was a picture of Dani, Ellie and her there, smiling, laughing, and looking so happy. It was taken at Dani's birthday party. River's eyes followed Clara's, and, realizing why Clara was so very desperate for help, she let out a long sigh.

"Oh, Clara, I'm so sorry." She sat down on the floor beside Clara. River grabbed the photo and looked down at it. Clara couldn't take her eyes off it.

"They are beautiful girls", River said with a smile. "How old are they?"

Clara's voice was barely a whisper: "Dani's 10 and Ellie's almost 7. He said it would happen before her 7th birthday, and that's... In a week." Clara broke into a sob.

"Less than a week I have left with my girls, unless someone helps me. Unless _you_ help me, River! You are the only person I know who can help, the Doctor isn't answering my calls!" Clara was grabbing River's hands now.

"Please, River, I beg you. Help me." Clara looked straight into River's eyes, and River looked back, not shying away from the hurt that was radiating from Clara's brown eyes. Clara thought she could see something change in River. She seemed to sit up more straight, looking more determined.

"Alright", she said. Clara couldn't believe what she had just heard.

"What?" she asked confusedly. River stood up and started pressing buttons on the vortex manipulator on her wrist.

"Alright, I will help you. I will do what I can. But I can't promise anything, you understand?" She gave Clara a hard stare. Clara flung herself at River, hugging her tightly. If possible she was crying even more now.

"Thank you", she whispered. She gave River a long hug, and then took a few steps back, looking at River with a whole new respect. River smiled that seductive smile at her again, oddly reassuring it was, and with a loud crack she had vanished, just a bit of smoke left where she had been standing.


End file.
